And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28

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Two Kinds of Fear

“I once climbed an indoor rock wall, and when I got to the top, I turned to look down, and I froze. Panic took over and I could not let go. I hung there, gripping the rope, terrified to release my hands, although I knew I couldn’t stay there forever.

What I felt at the top of that wall was fear. It wasn’t the first time I met fear. Fear and I are actually old friends. Like a shadow, fear accompanies me wherever I go. When I see spiders, I jump. When I see snakes, I run the other way. And when I think about the future, my stomach twists itself in knots.

Two Kinds of Fear

Fear is a common emotion. We might tease our friends for their fear of clowns or mice, but deep down, we all know that we have our own fears. It might not be furry creatures that startle us. Instead, we might fear being alone, or losing everything we’ve worked to gain, or being rejected. Whatever its form, fear is something we’ve all encountered at some point in our lives.

Scripture has a lot to say about fear. If we were to look up the word “fear” in our English Bibles, we’d find hundreds of occurrences. Yet in the Bible, not all fear is the same. There are two main ways that Scripture talks about it. First, there is the fear of God; second, there is the fear of everything else.”